Welcome to the Silhouette PH...Cruising again at last!

[Laurab23]

What things do you ask of your butler?

 

Laura

[chemmo]

1 hour ago, Laurab23 said:

What things do you ask of your butler?

 

Laura

Laura, you ask for things important to you...

 

We don’t want or need help packing or unpacking but I can understand how helpful some guests with disabilities may find this.

 

We are not entertaining this cruise for obvious reasons but previously we have requested a selection of light bites and drinks when friends have joined us for a sail away.

 

You can request room service to be delivered course by course. Again we haven’t requested that this cruise although our son and GF have enjoyed in suite breakfast.

 

Our butler has kept our bar well stocked and as there are four on us in suite and we do spend a lot of time there it has been a significant task...

 

Your butler will automatically bring you nibbles in the afternoon. We did request our butler to customise this to our taste...A small afternoon tea selection and a ‘bite of something’ in the fridge for later...

 

Our personal retreat host (butler) has sorted our laundry.

 

Via the shoreside concierge our butler sorted out our speciality dining requests.

 

The key things I think are important about making the most of having a butler are...

 

- letting him know exactly what you want.Be specific about daily requests then phone him for occasional ones.

-if you want anything special (like arranging a special in suite meal or a sail away party) let him know in advance so he can organise his time and ensure everything goes smoothly.

-if you have any questions, queries or concerns share them with him. Butlers are great at finding solutions.

-occasionally we will see comments on CC by people saying they have had a poor butler compared to the service levels others have received. They will complain others have had coffee delivered to their suite, had snacks brought, have had parties arranged...Quite simply all butlers will do all these things for all guests but if you don’t ask for them your butler will think you don’t want them...Many suite guests prefer to sort out things for themselves.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise!

 

[chemmo]

Presently enjoying fabulous weather in the channel...We had a very light breakfast in the Retreat Lounge then went to the Retreat Deck. Just sooooo much better than the Retreat Deck on Equinox. The addition of the second level has made a really big difference. Not only is there the jacuzzi (water feature sadly lacking on Equinox) there is a much wider variety of chairs and loungers in both shade and sun. We are so lucky to have had such good weather today...

[Laurab23]

45 minutes ago, chemmo said:

Laura, you ask for things important to you...

 

We don’t want or need help packing or unpacking but I can understand how helpful some guests with disabilities may find this.

 

We are not entertaining this cruise for obvious reasons but previously we have requested a selection of light bites and drinks when friends have joined us for a sail away.

 

You can request room service to be delivered course by course. Again we haven’t requested that this cruise although our son and GF have enjoyed in suite breakfast.

 

Our butler has kept our bar well stocked and as there are four on us in suite and we do spend a lot of time there it has been a significant task...

 

Your butler will automatically bring you nibbles in the afternoon. We did request our butler to customise this to our taste...A small afternoon tea selection and a ‘bite of something’ in the fridge for later...

 

Our personal retreat host (butler) has sorted our laundry.

 

Via the shoreside concierge our butler sorted out our speciality dining requests.

 

The key things I think are important about making the most of having a butler are...

 

- letting him know exactly what you want.Be specific about daily requests then phone him for occasional ones.

-if you want anything special (like arranging a special in suite meal or a sail away party) let him know in advance so he can organise his time and ensure everything goes smoothly.

-if you have any questions, queries or concerns share them with him. Butlers are great at finding solutions.

-occasionally we will see comments on CC by people saying they have had a poor butler compared to the service levels others have received. They will complain others have had coffee delivered to their suite, had snacks brought, have had parties arranged...Quite simply all butlers will do all these things for all guests but if you don’t ask for them your butler will think you don’t want them...Many suite guests prefer to sort out things for themselves.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise!

 

Thank you for the info.

[George C]

41 minutes ago, chemmo said:

Presently enjoying fabulous weather in the channel...We had a very light breakfast in the Retreat Lounge then went to the Retreat Deck. Just sooooo much better than the Retreat Deck on Equinox. The addition of the second level has made a really big difference. Not only is there the jacuzzi (water feature sadly lacking on Equinox) there is a much wider variety of chairs and loungers in both shade and sun. We are so lucky to have had such good weather today...

Luminae was fairly crowded on our edge cruise in July ship had 50 percent capacity, but suites were 100 percent. Really enjoy reading this thread , we also were in our first penthouse suite on edge . 

[chemmo]

11 minutes ago, George C said:

Luminae was fairly crowded on our edge cruise in July ship had 50 percent capacity, but suites were 100 percent. Really enjoy reading this thread , we also were in our first penthouse suite on edge . 

We have only dined in Luminae for breakfast and one lunch...Fairly quiet when we went, service excellent as always...The only comments I have heard from fellow guests re Luminae have been positive. 
 

Re the Edge PH how shaded was your balcony area? The overhang looks big over the PH and RSs ...One of the things we love about the S PH deck is the covered area near the bedroom where you can sit out even in the pouring rain and the more exposed areas where you can enjoy the sun during the day and the stars at night....

Edited September 16, 2021 by chemmo

[cruisnfool]

Thanks for checking. Card room on a TA would be awesome, oh well

[George C]

58 minutes ago, chemmo said:

We have only dined in Luminae for breakfast and one lunch...Fairly quiet when we went, service excellent as always...The only comments I have heard from fellow guests re Luminae have been positive. 
 

Re the Edge PH how shaded was your balcony area? The overhang looks big over the PH and RSs ...One of the things we love about the S PH deck is the covered area near the bedroom where you can sit out even in the pouring rain and the more exposed areas where you can enjoy the sun during the day and the stars at night....

The balcony was totally shaded which my wife liked but I don’t , while we loved the edge I did miss Tuscan grill also no Murano . Great bar and service in outdoor retreat area. Pool was a little small and always crowded.

[Dickuk]

1 hour ago, chemmo said:

We have only dined in Luminae for breakfast and one lunch...Fairly quiet when we went, service excellent as always...The only comments I have heard from fellow guests re Luminae have been positive. 
 

Re the Edge PH how shaded was your balcony area? The overhang looks big over the PH and RSs ...One of the things we love about the S PH deck is the covered area near the bedroom where you can sit out even in the pouring rain and the more exposed areas where you can enjoy the sun during the day and the stars at night....

We have been in Luminae almost every meal and its never been more than about 50% full. Its in two sections split by a mirror glass wall so feels more intimate than one big room. 

 

Both food and service have been excellent, I cannot praise the staff enough 😁

 

As chemmo mentioned the weather is fabulous, its like being in the med, the sun is really hot! We are so lucky for September. 

Edited September 16, 2021 by Dickuk

[paulabr]

On 9/14/2021 at 8:03 PM, chemmo said:

I think it is book on board only...In our experience on both Reflection (pre covid full ship) and now booking isn’t usually necessary. We went the other day for lunch and we were the only customers. Equally on Reflection it was rarely busy. Opening times are limited, certainty on this cruise, definitely a lunchtime rather than an evening venue...

 

Needless to say service and food were both excellent! 

thank you

 

[chemmo]

4 hours ago, George C said:

The balcony was totally shaded which my wife liked but I don’t , while we loved the edge I did miss Tuscan grill also no Murano . Great bar and service in outdoor retreat area. Pool was a little small and always crowded.

Sincere thanks for the feedback re the shaded balcony...We have just come in from our balcony having enjoyed star and moon gazing...We would miss this aspect of cruising so much with a restricted upward view...

[chemmo]

Last day and a few reflections....

 

Celebrity continues to ‘fit us like a comfortable glove’...

 

The cruise experience is enhanced by the suite areas. The Retreat Deck is a really nice addition and the Retreat Lounge and Luminae continue to offer superb service...

 

However, we want a bigger ship experience too...We have thoroughly enjoyed visiting a wide range of other bars and areas. Just so nice to have so many options...

 

The higher suite bonuses....

 

We have really enjoyed the unlimited speciality dining as we always do. So nice on a ship like Silhouette to have so many options. We loved The Porch for lunch, thank you to the staff for chasing off wasps in Belfast!!! Murano’s is always our favourite for food, Tuscan for the views...Lawn Grill provided us with what felt like a family BBQ experience mid cruise...

 

The bar set up we have really enjoyed. We (older generation) tend to spend quite a lot of time in our suite and it is so nice to just help yourself...Equally, late afternoon it has been great as a family to all sit on the balcony enjoying a drink or three...With the weather being so nice and blankets being plentiful we will all remember sitting out on the balcony star gazing with a glass of cognac for a long time...

 

The suite...We generally like the changes. As a close family of four it has suited us well. We have the same suite booked for next year...Nice to have two separate spaces and two bathrooms  but shared space too...

 

Staycation cruising...We thought long and hard about doing this. Health and safety being paramount.  We have been very impressed not only by Celebrity’s attention to detail to keep us safe but also by the compliance of all guests...We have all been ‘side stepping’ on pathways etc...Just so nice to have a united approach. We made a conscious decision not to get off the ship so we cannot comment on the ports of call.

 

Finally our sincere thanks to all staff on board...We are aware life is not great for them at the moment but they continue to smile behind their masks and service everywhere has been superb! We hope we meet up with you all on future cruises...

 

Time to pack before enjoying the rest of our final day...

 

Our sincere thanks to all staff for looking after us so well...

 

 

[chemmo]

Back at home....

 

Throughout our cruise our consistent reflection has been much as we love the layout and design of the ship it is the staff that have made it special.

 

We couldn’t finish without mentioning two final bits of thoughtfulness....

 

On returning to our suite a goodbye gift had been left for our son’s GF. If you can remember at the start of my post we had requested a ‘welcome aboard’ cake for her as it was her first cruise. They had presented her with a folder containing a picture of the ship, itinerary, a photo of her with our son and personal messages from the captain and other staff members...Just so lovely and thoughtful. Our sincere thanks to the Retreat team who arranged this, unfortunately we never got to thank them personally as we needed to be promptly off the ship.

 

Finally our butler who escorted us right of the ship insisting on carrying most of our hand luggage. As we have some mobility issues it was so appreciated...

 

Hope all of you that boarded yesterday have a fantastic cruise.

[jagoffee]

Chemmo, so glad that you and your family enjoyed your return to cruising.  Silhouette is our favorite Celebrity ship, but we have yet to experience an Edge Class ship.  It will be interesting to see if the Silhouette remains our favorite after our Apex experience early in October.

 

Thanks for posting and sharing your experience.

[chemmo]

4 minutes ago, jagoffee said:

Chemmo, so glad that you and your family enjoyed your return to cruising.  Silhouette is our favorite Celebrity ship, but we have yet to experience an Edge Class ship.  It will be interesting to see if the Silhouette remains our favorite after our Apex experience early in October.

 

Thanks for posting and sharing your experience.

Silhouette has become our favourite too....The only S class with a real revolution and the two extra restaurants. I will look out for your reviews on Apex....Always keen to try new experiences...